"I thought the author did a wonderful job with the descriptive imagery, great dialogues and overall such a strong and positive message. I really enjoyed it, and I was sorry it was over so soon. This story caught my attention right away and held it throughout. Great work!" ~ Elise Nilsen

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The Gathering

As a little cub, Ari had the comfort and security of the daily rhythms of his pride. Each morning the lionesses would gather the cubs. They would make their way down the winding path to get a drink from the lake at the bottom of the waterfall. Each evening they would gather once again into the safety of the cave drifting off into a peaceful sleep together. This gave Ari a sense of identity and belonging. It developed a foundation in his world that carried him through a most devastating and life shaking experience that changed his life forever.

Suddenly, the Black Wind struck and Ari, as a small cub, found himself completely alone and far away from his pride which was the only life that he knew. He felt a sense of loss and hopelessness as he looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings.

You may have had a similar experience where the Black Wind struck in your life. You may have felt alone and far away from the life that you once knew. You found that suddenly everything had changed and your surroundings were unfamiliar as well. The security and comfort you once knew was replaced with a deep loss and without hope of things getting any better.

Ari’s first step toward his way back home began with the encouraging words of Eliezer, the golden eagle who had befriended him. “My comrade,” the eagle spoke softly. “You must search for wisdom. With wisdom, all that you have lost will be returned to you and much more.”

Ari closed his eyes and the wisdom he found was remembering the gatherings of his pride, the daily rhythms. He remembered how warm and secure he felt next to the lionesses in the cave during the dark nights. He remembered the rushing waterfall, the many trips down the path to the lake to drink, and the tall mountains reaching higher than the clouds. Ari jumped up and turned toward Eliezer.

“The mountains! We must find the tallest mountain! That is where I will find my home.”

Remembering the gatherings helped Ari gain a sense of direction and a point of beginning his journey back home, back to that place of security, comfort, and a sense of belonging, back to the foundations that were built into him as a small cub.

The gathering together with one another during our daily rhythms of life is so important as it builds strength within us and among us. Then when the Black Wind should strike in your life shaking you to the very core, you can remember the foundations that were built during the gathering and daily rhythms. Clear direction will be found as you remember them, and the courage that was built during those times will surely begin to guide you on your journey home again.

“For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” ~ Matthew 18: 20

“This is the power of gathering: it inspires us, delightfully, to be more hopeful, more joyful, more thoughtful: in a word, more alive.” ~ Alice Waters